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You probably should also have on there( as a choice) "maintaining weight". After a 30 pound weight loss in 2003, I gained approx., 43 pounds. ( went up to 183 pounds.) I have been at a stable weight of 173 pounds for quite a long time now. I weigh myself weekly (same day, same time, same scale). My weight now is probably about 8 pounds more than what I was prior to my HIV diagnosis in 1985. I don't mind having a little extra weight on right now, my main concern, is keeping that weight constant.

The weight came back fairly evenly distributed, throughout 2004, any excess weight is in the gut right now. ( which I have been trying to work on )

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

I would say.. I've gained more muscle mass... but, I've lost some weight also... in the past 2 years I went from 180lbs 5% body fat at 5'8" to 165lbs and 5'7 1/2" 5% Bf... I think I'm getting shorter...lol but, with a small belly visceral fat beneath the muscle... without my old stand by bubble butt... its all muscle just to have a butt now... oh and to keep my appetite I am 420 friendly... I cook with canna butter... makes the best pasteries...lol I exercise because I like to eat... rarely do I have a glass of wine anymore...

I've had lipo close to a decade, and had too wasting episodes in '00 and '02. But for the past 3 years since regaining my baseline weight I have maintained it, and in fact have even been off testosterone supplementation therapy for 2 years. Currently it's not my numerical weight on a scale that is an issue, but the fact that due to lipo any weight I gain is subcutaneously positioned under my abdomen... hence skinny arms and legs and large stomach, but pushed forward with zero love handles on the side. I hear it's horribly chic right now in Addis Ababa.

Anyway, I can't answer this poll with the choices given for that reason.

27 yrs ago when I graduated from high school I weighted 130; today I still weight 130. Except for during a couple bouts of pneumonia when I went down to 115, and a couple time when I went off meds and dropped to 125, my weight has stayed the same despite numerous side effects. This poll definitely needs a third choice.

Logged

leatherman (aka mIkIE)

All the stars are flashing high above the seaand the party is on fire around you and meWe're gonna burn this disco down before the morning comes- Pet Shop Boys chart from 1992-2015Isentress/Prezcobix

I work out, try to eat right, but I have gained 25lbs since I started meds. D

Logged

Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan 'Press On' has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race. Calvin Coolidge

I spent 1999-2002 dealing with severe diarrhea and when Kaletra spiked my lipids (cholesterol was at 525 at one point) I was put on a strict no-fat, no-cholesterol, no-kidding ever diet which I maintained from 2002-2005. All this resulted in a net weight loss of 30 pounds (180 to 150).

Workouts and a sane(r) diet have brought me back to 155-160, which is basically where I should be. At 180 I was carrying "insurance" weight which wasn't really all that hot but made me feel better.

BTW- I'm short (in case anyone forgot/never knew): 5'6, so 30 lbs made quite an impact. My waist went from 33 to 28 (which I hadn't worn since my early 20s), shirts went from 16 1/2 to 15 1/2 and from large to small casual tops, suits from 40 (ideally 41) down to 38. It was as if I'd shrunk and it alarmed people around me.

Bit I'm lucky as regards lipo. My face could use some filling, but my abs are tight and lovehandles ancient history. In the right clothes I look lean, healthy and athletic. But anything that used to fit is now a baggy mess, and I have pitched 85% of my old wardrobe...still have all those ties, but I never use 'em anymore.

Brent(Who generally feels good about his body's appearance, despite a mid-life shift)

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Blessed with brains, talent and gorgeous tits.

The revolutionary smart set reads The Spin Cycle at least once every day.

In 1998 when I went on meds, I also started paying more attention to exercise and nutrition. My starting weight was about 190. A year later my weight was the same, but in dramatically different proportions--way less fat and more muscle. In October 2005 when I went off meds, my weight was 225 at about 11% body fat. Now, it hoevers around 230 with all fat and water gain, thanks to allergies which have made hard workouts difficult and an appetite that won't slow down..... and a fondness for chocolate.

I've been up and down in weight so many times.Like Bucko, Kaletra put my lipids way up there so I have to watch my fat intake. I am also short 5'6 and right now at 145. I range between 140 and 150 all year round. What I did notice is how my body has changed. Besides turning 36, I feel the meds did something to my body... I am not fat, I don't have a gut (belly) but I have love handles now. It is the way the fat is distributed in my body that has changed.I guess I just need to get to the gym.

Rich

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POSITIVE PEDALERS... We are a group of people living with HIV/AIDS, eliminating stigma through our positive public example.

Philly, in a conversation about this subject or indeed in any context, your comment about Addis Ababa comes off as gratuitous and insensitive. You can make your point without that kinda stuff. Others who have read that have been offended.

Sorry, certainly it was not meant in any way other than to indicate my stomach looks like someone who is malnourished. I apologize for my bad attempt at humor in trying to lighten the daily load I carry and have carried for a decade with lipo.

When I was sick with PCP I went down to 160 and damn I looked good. The doctor told me I needed to get back to my presick weight which was 190. So here I sit at 190, unhappy, need to lose some weight but that cookie sitting on the counter looks yummy, LOL.

I've gained 60lbs approx since starting meds...swollen stomach, (bonus is great boobs), listless, joint pains, high blood pressure, CRAVE sugar. I'm 6'2 so at 221 arent HIDEOUS and still only have a BMI of 24 (normal) and would rather be fat than dead BUT, its a bitch. Whilst one of the 'less' severe problems I've had due to the virus, I wish it would just stop throwing more at meSeeing doc next week but am going to try and quit smoking using champix so probably will pile on moreOn kivexa,invirase and norvir/ritonavir

Logged

I know i'm going to enjoy the party in the afterlife, but do you all mind that I'm going to be VERY late!!!

Today my blood pressure was down to a beautiful 126/80 (FUCK YES!!!!) and I can only attribute it to stopping smoking. I had always been around 150-95 before, it's the first time I'm back to normal.

As I already mentioned to you tigger, if you take Chantix (or Champix), the cravings are so mild they are not the ones you want to replace with eating. Just a glass of water and you're done. I wouldn't even call those "cravings". Rather a "a cig would be nice now" moment, so eating shouldn't be that problematic like if you were going cold turkey.

Even before HIV it has always been easier for me to lose weight than gain it. I went through a peroid of chronic diarrhea in 2002 and lost 30 lbs in 2 months. My G.I. have improved lately and I am able to better manage my weight. For a bodybuilding competition I gained 10 lbs., which made me very happy, then lost 24 lbs, most of which was fat.

I'm not on meds so i guess this question doesnt apply to me but i noticed that there was a time when i lost a lot of weight pretty quick and everyone said i looked "sick", that was like a year ago or so. Lately though i have put weight back on and look healthier i guess...

I am unsure what causes these 10-15 pound fluctuations.....some months im always hungry, others i dont want to see food.....not sure if it is because of HIV or emotional fluctuations...

I have gained weight since my diagnosis, which is actually a good thing. I weighed in at a whopping 138 lbs on diagnosis because of improper nutrition, smoking, etc...I'm now pleased to say that I eat right, quit smoking, and now weigh in at 188 lbs, which is right where I should for my body type and height. I look good and feel great so I can't complain to much.

I'm like PR, not on any meds. I am 5'3 and weigh 163, so due to height I guess I would be overweight. Has a bit of a tummy but was told it was sexy....Yeah, right, he said it cause he thought he was going to get some ass. I would assume my weight prolly comes from drinking so much Pepsi......But hasn't been my ideal weight since having kids, 3 by c-section...How does one get their stomach back after that? Can't do crunches because of back injury...

I was a little heavy (pre-HIV). Went to one of those drive-thru plastic surgery clinics for Liposuction. 185 to 155. I maintained the 150 to 155 for years. AIDS and PCP and hospitalization for a summer, I dropped to 125. It was just like magik, turn sideways and disapear. I seem to have leveled off at 144 over the past couple of years and Federated Department Stores could confirm my MACY's account gets used heavily in the men's department. I feel good about myself, like the way I look and yeah, I have a little eating disorder and I shop. I have been taken off Lipitor and my blood pressure was normal last week. Have the best dayMichael(who wishes they sold men in the men's department)

when i started meds i was about 15o..at 5ft7...now im at 132..had to cut down on eating because the Kaletra was making me triglycerides shoot up..now im undectible..cd4 at 468 and a VL of less than 50..but i have no enrgey at all..still seems like at the end of the day i going to collapse. I try to go to the gym but i seems almsot impossible to get back to my size or even have energy..not sure if its the meds, HIV or because im not eating enough

I have been gaining....when I found out in May I lost 10lbs, but since then I have put about 8lbs back on. If I can stay at 145-150 I will be happy. Cause if I put more weight on I will have to go shopping for new jeans, and with what I have invested in jeans I cant afford to gain!

I started on meds just about one year ago, and have gained 8 kilos, about 16 or 17 pounds I guess. My weight was 66 kg (some 130 pounds) and now I am in 72 kilos (some 145 pounds more or less). I am 170 cm tall, about 5 foot 7 inches...

I feel ok, but I wanted this gain to stop.

I've been going to gym and have gained muscular mass... but also fat!!!

So I've changed a bit my food habits, and now this seems to be stabilized, since 2 months ago my weight is the same.

I've gained about 10-15 pounds over the last year and a half on meds - all in the belly! I despise it. I've recently started on a diet prescribed by a nutritionist my doc sent me too. It's helped - only been two weeks but I feel better and have the energy level to start exercising again - which will hopefully get rid of the belly.

Still losing after med change around 5 lbs a week right now. I had an absolute mental breakdown on Sunday night in the McDonalds drive thru at the fiance and it lasted through Disc 2 of season one of Oz. I did not eat that entire day because I am tired of getting sick everytime I even think of food. It was so sucky this weekend because we were supposed to do all these fun things in the cities but my butt kept me home and chained to the toilet so our big outing was Blockbuster and McDonalds except when I got to the drive thru I knew that I could eat literally nothing there without getting sick.I threatened not to eat anymore but I need all the energy I can get with two children. I am totally bummed at the momment and have another dr. appt. soon so we will see what he says but I am thinking that after 7 months of this and two med changes I may need to go on disability beacuse that is how bad it is.